What are the five (5) most common and preferred body types for males and female?
One of the biggest FYI’s you can take away from this article is to understand lean muscle vs bodyfat and what role they play in the description of body types. Nowadays we have an obesity pandemic, especially in the United States. In addition to the pandemic due to poor eating habits and lack of exercise, misinformation that is spread through social media outlets has created a new bodytype that most people do not desire called “skinny fat”. This means that people have lost a significant amount of muscle from what is considered normal either via extreme dieting and cardio or just age.
When people take part in extreme diets with or without exercise they experience a substantial amount of weightloss of which a great portion of that loss is muscle mass. The biggest problem with losing muscle is that the only way to build it back up is through weightlifting through a program called hypertrophy and most people have no idea how to go about that. Most people that lose weight through extreme diet and caloric deficits eventually gain it all back but none of the muscle is regained and instead is gained through bodyfat. This is what causes a skinny fat body. Check out this article to get even more information: What is the perfect body shape of a female or male?
Normal:
This choice is for people who want to live a healthy active life. They are not concerned with being muscular or lean. They are within the healthy body fat range of 16-20% and a healthy body weight where they are out of the risky or high risk category which may lead to illnesses.
Women Google “victoria secret model”. They are usually slim to normal. Men Google “male models”. Male models range between normal bodies to athletic but lean mostly towards normal. The way I usually describe this body type is walking into someone on the streets and they don’t look skinny, overweight, or muscular. You can’t tell if they workout or not. They look “ordinary” but if in the right body fat range can be considered healthy.
Athletic:
This is for individuals who want to have a little bit of muscularity but not overdone. They want to be lean but not too lean. They want curves and definition but not striations. They typical bodyfat range for this bodytype is 11-15%. This bodytype carries anywhere from 5-15 extra pounds of muscle compared to a normal bodytype. Women can check out Ashley Kaltwasser to see what this body type is most like.
Women Google “Ms. Olympia bikini competitor”. Men Google “Mens Physique Competitor”. For this look I explain it as someone who looks like they exercise and are fit. They are not big or over muscular by any means.
Athletic Muscular:
This is for individuals who want to be muscular and maximize athletic performance. They also want to be lean. This bodytype carries about 5-15 pounds of extra muscle compared to athletic. Those interested in this physique can check out Reigning Mens Physique Mr. Olympia Brandon Hendrickson and Reigning Fitness Ms. Olympia Whitney Jones to see what this body type resembles.
Women Google “Womens Figure Competitor”. Men Google “Mens Physique Competitor”. For men who compete for the IFBB, on the small side they would be considered athletic but on the bigger more muscular side would be considered athletic muscular. This body type is very impressive. You can tell they train hard and most likely lift heavy weights. Women still look feminine but more often than not have thick strong lower half.
Muscular:
This is for individuals who want to focus more on muscularity than athletic performance. This does not mean that a muscular individual can’t be very athletic. However, because of the extra muscularity when it comes to athletic performance a muscular individual will have inferior cardiovascular endurance. This body type carries about 5-15 pounds of extra muscle compared to that of an athletic muscular person. Those interested in this category can see Reigning Mens Classic Physique Mr. Olympia Chris Bumstead and Womens Physique Ms. Olympia Sarah Villegas to see what this body types resemble.
Women Google “Womens Physique Competitor. Men Google “Mens Classic Physique Competitor”. This look is very hard to achieve and takes a lot of time. In bodybuilding is usually not attainable naturally. Women may still look feminine at the face but their body starts resembling a more masculine appearance. It is more of a niche.
Bodybuilder:
If you follow the IFBB Pro League you can view their bodybuilding category to see what this body type entails. This is also true for the 212 pounds division. In this category the main focus is an excess amount of muscle. Honestly speaking you can’t expect to be any type of muscular endurance and mobility can be very poor. There are exceptions. I have seen bodybuilders with great flexibility and athletic ability but those are one of a kind genetic anomalies. Those interested in this category can check out the Reigning Mens Mr. Olympia Big Ramy and Reigning Mens 212 Mr. Olympia Derek Lundsford.
One very important thing to note is that most of these ideas for visuals are for people who are dieted down and in shape for these specific contests and or presentations if they are models. They’re bodyfat is most likely under 6% for competitions and in the offseason they may walk around 14-18% body fat. My purpose is to give you an idea of the muscularity each physique carries.
If you purchased a product make sure that you select the preferred bodytype of your choice and email it to us a long with your measurements, bodyfat, and anything else required to create your reports to [email protected].
How to choose your ideal body weight using the charts below:
- Scroll down to your height. Be as accurate as possible.
- Find the column that has your ideal body type.
- Cross the height row with ideal body type column and that is your ideal body weight at 14% body fat. Normal body type is the only body fat that is at 16% body fat.
